The Land of Ubuntu - A poem about South Africa

I wrote the poem titled, "The Land of Ubuntu" to contribute towards cultivating and promoting patriotism amongst our people, especially the youth.

I was born grew up in Ulundi, South Africa, during the time when the country was still under the apartheid rule, where people were segregated based on their race, and were forced to live separately, and at some point black people had to obtain special permission and carry a pass, to be in previously whites-only areas. As a consequence, black people were disadvantaged when it came to access to education, jobs, means of production, right to elect government and we were denied many of the basic human rights.

Fast forward, in 1994, after many years of struggle against colonialism and apartheid rule, black people attained political freedom and a right to vote for a government of their choice, but that did not mean the automatic reversal of all the injustices of the past as the spatial development had access to economic means had been segregated for many decades. Therefore, it goes without saying that our social cohesion project would take many years and generations to bear the desired fruits. I must say the country initially did well in ensuring that the transition from the previous regime to the new one was a peaceful one. One of the terms that was coined to promote this social cohesion, for instance, was the Rainbow Nation, which was aimed at making the citizens accept the fact that as much as the country comprised of different races, it was possible to live together like the colours of the rainbow. Also, the country embarked on a project of Truth and Reconciliation as an attempt to heal the scars of the past.

One of our biggest problems is that those who were previously disadvantaged economically and politically, were not and are still not on equal footing with the minority that was privileged and had managed to accumulate wealth from a position of privilege. As the country tries to transform, this skewed equation continues to perpetuate or has the potential to bring about instability when the physical separation arising from the past is not addressed through social cohesion, to ensure that everyone appreciates where we come from as a nation, but embrace the responsibility to secure a future that will be bright for the generations to come.

One may argue that a poem is not a significant enough initiative to foster patriotism but I would argue that it is indeed relevant, because social cohesion is a state of mind, and therefore it starts with consciousness. This poem, seeks to conscientize my fellow countrymen and indeed all Africans about where we come from. It is a reminder to never forget the potential we have as a nation and to believe in the spirit of Ubuntu that we are known for, which is derived from the saying, "umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu" (a person is a person through other people).